A variety of types of audio and video components are generally found in a home or business. For example, most homes contain at least a television (TV), a personal video recorder (PVR), a videocassette recorder (VCR), and/or a digital video disk (DVD) player. In addition, many homes contain a stereo system and/or a computer system. Such stereo systems may range from a single component, such as a clock radio, to a multi-component system that includes a receiver, one or more amplifiers, a tape player, a compact disc (CD) player, and/or other components. The computer system may comprise a laptop computer, desktop computer, or another type of computing component.
These systems are generally independently controlled. For example, a cable or satellite tuner/demodulator may connect a cable or satellite system to a TV, and a DVD player may be connected to the same TV or another TV in another room. Generally, a user controls components such as the DVD player and the cable or satellite tuner using individual remote controls. To facilitate control of both of these components, universal programmable remote control technology enables the user to control the DVD player and the cable component using a single remote control. It has also become possible to connect audio and video components together into a single larger system that individual components are distributed about various rooms around the household. Unfortunately, controlling these systems becomes complex and difficult.
One solution has been proposed to combine these technologies into a single all-in-one system that may then drive, for example, a single TV. As one example, this all-in-one system may include a DVD player, a personal video recorder (PVR) dish, and a cable tuner. Unfortunately, this solution usually requires extremely complex electronics and/or logic. Moreover, since consumers usually desire different features, design of an all-in-one system for some consumers usually does not fit the needs of other consumers. Moreover, if a consumer buys an all-in-one system and later decides that a new feature is desired, such systems cannot generally accommodate the addition of new features. Lastly, an all-in-one system presents a single point of failure problem that may require the entire system to be inoperable and/or unavailable until repaired.